Mam-ma's Southern Family

In the first installment , we learned that my 3x-great-grandfather, George W. Lancaster (1839-1919), received a land patent from the federal government for forty acres located in Maricopa County, Arizona Territory, on 15 July 1890. [1] He filed for the land on 8 June 1886, and made his final proof on 4 February 1887 before the clerk of the District Court in Phoenix. [2] He was to complete an affidavit describing the improvements made to the land and to bring two witnesses, who also gave affidavits. His witnesses were to be two of the following: George H. Trook, Isaac B. Hand, James P. Moffatt, and Legh R. Shaw. [3] George’s Testimony The affidavit is four pages long, and the questions were asked by J. E. Walker, clerk of the 2nd Judicial District of the U.S. District Court in Phoenix. George was first sworn in and gave testimony to numerous questions. [4] He stated his name was George W. Lancaster, that he was forty-seven years old, worked as a farmer, and was not employed by an...

The Texas State Genealogical Society has a series of Heritage Certificates honoring our ancestors who settled in Texas. The Texas First Families Certificate is awarded to individuals who have ancestors who settled in Texas before 19 February 1946, which is the date Texas “relinquished its sovereignty to the United States government.” So, I wondered if I had any ancestors who came to Texas before it was admitted to statehood. I have several who were listed on the 1850 census: Benjamin F. Selman (1795-1873), his wife, Sarah (1798-1868), and children Greenlee B (1820-1888) and Sarah (1818- ) were living in Cherokee County. [1] Their son, Willis F. Selman , married Margaret Rebecca Evans on 29 November 1849 in Cherokee County. [2] Their daughter, Mary Ann Selman , married Calvin C. Scott on 12 September 1848 in Cherokee County. [3] A biography about Benjamin stated he settled in Cherokee County circa 1845. [4] I learned that Cherokee County was formed in 1846 after statehood and ...

Why did a Texan move his family to the desert in the Arizona Territory? That’s a question we may never know the answer to unless we find a diary, journal, or letter that speaks to that. It was a surprise to discover he had moved his family to Arizona. For many years, I thought his wife, Martha, had died, and the children all scattered. The missing 1890 census helped with that hypothesis. George Wilson Lancaster was born on 3 April 1839 in Lewis County, Missouri. [1] He married Martha Jane Polly on 25 October 1871 in Kaufman County, Texas. [2] By the 1880 census, they had three children: Wm Carlton, age 7; Lonnie O, age 4; Maggie R, age one month. [3] There is no 1890 census left, as it was damaged in a fire. In 1900, only George is found living with Sarge & Pearl Lancaster. [4] Ten years later, he was living with his son, William, and William’s six children and wife. George died on 14 January 1919. [5] Where did Martha and the children go? The oldest son, William Carlton La...

Calling all Genea-Musings Fans:  It's  Saturday Night  again -  Time for some more  Genealogy Fun!! Our mission from Randy Seaver of Genea-Musings is to: 1)   FamilySearch Full-Text Search  continues to add databases and searchable images to its collections.  This is a gold mine, especially of land, probate, and court records. 2)  Pick one or two of your ancestors and see what you can find on FamilySearch Full-Text Search about them. Here's mine: Funny, I had done a full-text search this morning looking for more items for my ancestor, N. H. O. Polly. I was hoping to find something in Arkansas. Their first child was born there, but I have no information on their whereabouts there in the 1840s. I had to leave my search to attend the monthly meeting of the Sonoma County Genealogical Society in Santa Rosa, which is a 90-minute drive there, but I left the tabs open on what I had found. Here is a summary of a few of the it...

My grandmother's husband, Tom J. Johnston, and his brother, Hal W. Johnston, went into business together in Walnut Creek, California. Their pool hall was located right on Main Street. Pictured is my grandfather behind the bar. The earliest news article I found about the business was an announcement in the Contra Costa Gazette announcing that Grimes & Nottingham Billiard Parlor will now be known as the Johnston's Billiard Parlor, effective November 1, 1944.[1] The previous business had been on Main Street since 1915. Tom and Hal planned to make several changes, including repainting.[2] Here is a shot of the outside of the new billiard parlor. They advertised the establishment as a recreation headquarter where beer, soft drinks, cigars, cigarettes, and candy were sold besides a place to play billiards and pool.[3]  In March 1945, teenagers protested being barred from the poolroom, and new rules were established that those under 16 were still not allowed, but those between 16 ...

The National Genealogical Society’s Family History Conference was held this year in Louisville, Kentucky, and this allowed me to conduct on-site research for my family and my husband’s family. Before going, I studied websites and finding aids, and created my own research goals. My husband’s family was straightforward. I acquired documents from the Indiana State Archives, and we visited two cemeteries in Jeffersonville and Louisville. However, two of my family lines are more complicated. I have the Lancaster and Neal families in Shelby County, Kentucky, and the Polly family in Lewis County. This post will report on my findings in Shelby County. Shelby County I started in Shelby County. The county seat is Shelbyville, and we visited the county museum first. The director informed us that their historic records are in the Kentucky Room at the public library. There was a gold mine there. So often, family files contain no records about my family, but there was a thick folder on the Lanca...

Back in my baby genealogy days, like many newbies, I found books that mentioned my ancestor. I then used the book to record information about that ancestor, their spouse and children, and any parents and grandparents. Even when I first started, I knew to record my sources, so I have the titles and authors of these books found in libraries. I might even have the name of the library that houses the book. For this theme, I will focus on the person who is the furthest back ancestor, my 8th-great-grandfather, John Sellman. He is not an ancestor of my grandmother, Mam-ma, but of her husband, my grandfather, Tom Johnston. I collected this information from two books: John Sellman of Maryland and Descendants by W. Marshall Sellman, Associate Professor of History, University of Cincinnati, published in 1975. The other book is  Over the Mountain: A Narrative History of the Bean, Selman, and Germany Families by Martha L. Crabb, published in 1990. Both these books were found at the FamilySear...